World War Strategy

Battlestations: Midway is unique among its brethren. It is a World War 2 game, but for once, not a first-person shooter. It is a real-time strategy title, putting you in active control of each unit of a powerful war machine, allowing you to deploy them with a simple click of a button.

Bring out the big guns.

Setting the Stage
Battlestations: Midway begins where it really only could begin, with the battle of Pearl Harbor and it extends all the way through, you guessed it, the battle of Midway. Each battle is based on reality, but the way they play out is entirely up to you. History buffs will delight in attempting to recreate authentic tactics in a successful battle while trying to improve the historical strategy in less successful engagements.

Throughout the game, you control a single man, named Henry Walker. As you progress through the game Walker progresses through military ranks, and you gain control of larger and more powerful forces.

All Units
Throughout the campaign, you'll take charge of every imaginable unit in a naval battle: Destroyers, cruisers, submarines, aircraft carriers, bombers, fighter planes, and more. What's unique, however, isn't the use of the units, but the fact that you can actively control every one of them. In traditional RTS games, you would select every unit and then direct them, but in this game, you can take control of an individual fighter plane and take it into combat as the pilot, allowing the skilled player to supersede the A.I. to his advantage.

Take flight over Midway.

Keeping Order
Taking control of a single unit can become very engrossing, so remember to keep an eye on the bigger picture. Using a combination of your tactical map and manually switching between combat units, you can arrange fleet formations, assign waypoints, attack enemy units, and search for targets.

Damage Control
If real-life tactics of a large-scale battle aren't enough to keep you occupied, you also need to contend with the ramifications of each battle. When a ship takes damage, you must assign manpower to deal with the damaged ship. The intensity of the game gets ratcheted up when you must do this, and dealing with multiple points of damage, such as ruined weapons, leaks, fires, and broken rudders is perhaps as exciting and immersive as combat.

One less ship to worry about.

Beyond the Campaign
No one can accuse Battlestations: Midway of being light on content. Not only does it provide a lengthy single-player campaign, but it also offers a series of challenges outside the story-mode, where you're asked pilot a ship, plane, or submarine with a predetermined objective.

The Multiplayer Test
Between the single-player campaign and the offline challenges, any Battlestations: Midway player has plenty of opportunity to prepare themselves for the ultimate challenge: Multiplayer matches over Xbox Live®.

It's one thing to succeed against the game's A.I., but bringing down a dynamic, cunning, human opponent is where this game may shine the most. Every battle is different, every player unique, and with the same access to units as the offline game, this is a strategy title that will flourish online for months to come.

Battlestations: Midway is a gift for strategy players, and an original one at that. With its real-time, hands-on control of units, and its authentic World War 2 setting, it is a game that the hardcore enthusiast and the tactically inclined action gamer alike can both embrace.

Article by Ryan Treit